The Center serves a nine-state area, including parts of Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, Long Island- New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, Rhode Island, and Virginia.

The soils, topography, climate, and land use of the Center’s service area produce a distinct plant resource area. Active sand dunes exist along the shores. Wind erosion occurs on sandy cultivated fields. Water erosion is a problem on sloping cropland, and shoreline erosion threatens the tidal estuaries. Agriculture is predominantly cash row crops, orchards, truck crops, specialty crops, and poultry.

There are large areas in hardwood and pine forests. Extensive areas of tidal marsh are vital to the seafood and wildlife resources. Outdoor recreation is a major industry placing extreme pressure on natural resources. Resource concerns include air quality; coastal systems; cover crops; critical/disturbed areas; invasive species; rare, endangered, and threatened species; submerged aquatic vegetation; and urban resource conservation.

The Cape May Plant Materials Center has developed 16 conservation plants including grasses shrubs and forbs for enhancing conservation plantings in their service area.

Highlights

GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE AND SEA LEVEL RISE

Enhancing coastal plant systems through plant selection and technology development

Plant diversity on sand dunes is broadened through the evaluation of diversified seed mixtures to supplement vegetative plantings. 'Atlantic' coastal panicgrass is currently the only coastal plant successfully seeded on back dune areas in the Mid-Atlantic.

Selection of a cold tolerant sea oats for the northern Mid-Atlantic area is ongoing.

High Tide Germplasm switchgrass, a local ecotype from the Chesapeake Bay area, is the only commercially available switchgrass developed specifically for riparian applications and shoreline stabilization.

Seeding technology is being developed for establishing smooth cordgrass in intertidal areas for shoreline stabilization

RESTORING NATIVE PLANT COMMUNITIES

Ecotypes in support of Farm Bill programs and ecological restoration

Selection of Suther prairie native warm season grasses. Suther is a remnant eastern prairie in the piedmont of North Carolina. The Piedmont prairie is a special emphasis area for the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) in North Carolina.

Collection, increase, and distribution of southern New England ecotypes of big bluestem, little bluestem and indiangrass for WHIP and other projects.

Researching native pollinator-plant interactions in a cooperative project with Rutgers University

Evaluation of several native warm season grasses for application in riparian buffers

Investigating the direct seeding of shrubs for coastal and riparian areas for wildlife habitat improvement

CARBON SEQUESTRATION AND SOIL QUALITY

Changes in soil carbon by using native grasses and cover cropping systems

Soil carbon changes under six native warm-season grasses are being monitored in a 15-year study.

Baseline data for soil quality attributes are developed and changes in soil quality from various cover cropping systems are evaluated. Comparisons of long-term warm-season grass, cool-season pasture, annual cover crops/fallow, and mixed stands of cool/warm-season grasses provide information on changes in soil quality.

Evaluation of adaptability of several southern legumes for the Mid-Atlantic region.

Timber Germplasm switchgrass was selected and released as a high yielding biomass crop.